How to Get on the Darn Ship for First Time Cruisers Embarkation Day

So you are a first time cruiser. You have booked your cruise. Booked your flights. Packed your bags and I bet you are pretty excited to go. Here’s a few tips for your embarkation day to make sure that things are stress free.First, you should try and time your arrival to the ship. Many first timers make the mistake of thinking that when the cruise lines says embarkation starts at a certain time, you will be able to stroll right on board, get into your room and get your vacation started. This is not the case. All though the cruise line will schedule an approximate time to start embarkation, it is just that. Approximate. There are many factors which can cause the cruise line to delay the start of their embarkation. From the ship arriving late, delays with the debarkation from the cruise before, or just man power in turning the ship around, all of these things can affect the time that the embarkation process will begin.Secondly, even if the embarkation process does begin on time, another factor you may want to consider is that most people who are going on the cruise are going to be there when embarkation begins. This means there will be considerable lines with people checking in and going through security. Imagine if 2500 people were getting on an airplane at the same time, you wouldn’t want to be in that security line.Finally, even if you are one of the lucky ones who manages to get on the ship first, you more than likely will not be able to get to your room. The people who were on the cruise before you probably left the cabin around 10:30am, and you are getting on around noon. The cabin steward is a miracle worker, but getting that many cabins ready in that short of time is just not going to happen. Most of the time you will have to wait until 1:30pm or 2pm before you will be able to actually get into your room.So what do you do to avoid all of this? Well, try and plan your arrival to the port accordingly. Flights may end up getting you to the port really early and you think that there is no other alternative but to go to the ship. If you look around though you may find other options to spend some of your time in the home port.. Sometimes there are hotels near-by that will rent you a room for the day.Then you can relax, freshen up and be ready to board the ship.That being said, don’t leave it till the last minute to get on board. The ship will sail on time if at all possible. Usually 2:30pm is a good time to show up for a typical embark. The initial rush to get on board is already over, so short lines in the terminal and once you get on board you’ll be able to get right to your room with no waiting. Enjoy your cruise!